Even Though It Probably Should Be, Titus Young’s NFL Career Isn’t Over

I mean, really wrong. Some time down the road, perhaps we will find out that he is a tortured soul, haunted by personal demons and private childhood memories. Maybe something will come to light that makes us look back on his actions with a better understanding, a more sensitive touch with a pinch of empathy, if I may be so bold. It kind of happened with Brandon Marshall.

Until that time, it’s hard to not just shake your head and laugh in disbelief at what Young has “accomplished” in the past nine months:

And that was just 2012-13. He was acting like a jerk long before then.

If you click that last link, you’ll see what Rams head coach Jeff Fisher had to say Friday when he released Young, and if you read between the lines, you can basically tell that he and the organization didn’t like what they heard from Young during their “extended interview process.”

They probably met the player who said he’s a team player despite lining up incorrectly twice on purpose during a game last season.

They probably met the player who tweeted that he wasn’t selfish and ended that same sentence by threatening to quit if he doesn’t get more targets. Those two ideas seems to be in direct conflict with each other a little bit.

At the very least, Young is self-centered, ignorant and delusional. Those aren’t exactly novel qualities in an athlete. I mean, you could use one or all of those terms to describe the likes of Chad Johnson, Allen Iverson, Randy Moss, Deion Sanders and many, many other pros when they were at the top of their game.

Of course, one major factor separating those players and Young is numbers.

Those All-Stars had more leeway because the trouble they created was otherwise tolerated due to their production on the playing field. Young hasn’t come close to earning the benefit of the doubt yet. He’s basically like Terrell Owens … just without all of the yards, touchdowns and Hall of Fame credentials.

But that’s not to say Young doesn’t have the ability to positively impact a team for once. He is 23 years old, fast, cheap to add and has shown special big-play skills. So, for all of the incredibly idiotic things he has said and done during his short time in the league, I strongly disagree with those who say another team won’t give Young his third chance.

They can do exactly what the Rams did — bring him in for nothing, check him out, evaluate and release him for nothing if they don’t like what they see. In the end, the NFL, like everything else, is a business. If Young can help on the field, he will be good for someone’s business.

It might take some time, but I believe his absolute worst-case scenario is sitting out the 2013 season, and then getting a gig before September 2014, if he avoids any sort of run-ins with the law and such. That much idle time for a guy like him could be an awful thing.

But look at a team such as the Patriots. They need to get younger and faster at wide receiver. They will probably let go of Wes Welker, and there are rumors that Brandon Lloyd could follow, opening a huge void in that offense. Bill Belichick has a history of taking in talented-yet-disorderly players (Aqib Talib is the most recent example). Could he give Young a shot? It’s worth pondering.

Considering that the Rams were the only team to place a waiver claim for Young, he certainly won’t be signing anywhere in the immediate future. But some franchise will look at his physical skills and think it can straighten him out. The tough thing to answer is whether Young realizes that he needs to be straightened.